The Wedding Planner
by psychokid
Summary: An unsub is kidnapping beautiful woman and killing their fiancees. What will happen when the unsub has a psychotic break and the victimology changes? Future Slash. Violence. Rating may change to M later.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** All characters and what-not do not belong to me, only the story, which doesn't technically belong to me either.

**A/N: **Alrighty, boys and girls. This fiction was requested by Ralyena Starrling, and the entire plot is her idea, so the fabulous idea is hers. I changed a little, but overall it's what she asked. The general format of the story might be hard to latch on to for the first few chapters, as it will be a little jumpy, but if you hold on for the ride, I think you might enjoy it. Well, I hope you enjoy it anyway. It will be slashy, on occasion. There's no particular time-line for this, let's just pretend it's sometime in the future, and hope nothing canon happens to punch my story in the face. Oh, and the title...just...I dunno, I'm no good at titles.

* * *

_Hear the mellow wedding bells,_

_Golden bells!_

_What a world of happiness their harmony foretells!_

_Through the balmy air of night_

_How they ring out their delight!_

_From the molten-golden notes,_

_All in tune,_

_What a liquid ditty floats_

_To the turtle-dove that listens, while she gloats_

_On the moon!_

_Oh, from out the sounding cells_

_What a gush of euphony voluminously wells!_

_How it swells!_

_How it dwells_

_On the Future! how it tells_

_Of the rapture that impels_

_To the swinging and the ringing_

_Of the bells, bells, bells,_

_Of the bells, bells, bells, bells,_

_Bells, bells, bells-_

_To the rhyming and the chiming of the bells!_

_-_Edgar Allan Poe, The Bells

Smooth satin and frail lace, perfectly crafted to wrap around the soft curves of a woman's body. Rough calloused fingers softly brush against the fabric, admiring the tasteful seaming. It's such a hard thing to wait for, inevitable marriage. Giddiness rushes through him as he continues to inspect the dress. He'll be married soon; it's only a matter of time now. He imagines his bride in the dress, the way the fabric will cling to her. Pale skin complimenting the luminescent fabric, her brown hair curled under the shear veil, her full lips curling at the corners in a small smile, even as her large eyes fill with tears of joy. He knows he's not really supposed to see the dress before the wedding, but someone has to make sure it won't get dirty, someone must admire it. Carefully, he recovers the dress with plastic, to keep dust and dirt away from the perfectly white, clean material. He hears his young bride-to-be yell from downstairs, so he shuts the closet door, before turning to go.

* * *

"How is she?" Jared asks, his voice still rusty with sleep. He runs his hand through his dark hair, still not used to how short it was now that it was cropped short. One of the medics walked over slowly, a grim expression on her face. There were dark circles under her eyes. No doubt she was also investigating the evidence from the other attacks, and had not been getting much sleep. Being called to a crime scene at two in the morning probably wasn't helping.

"Well, she'll make it. Her face is…just like the others. You'll get to talk to her tomorrow morning probably, but right now, she's too traumatized."

Jared nodded. Just like the others. All three of the other women looked just the same as this women. "Name?" The medic nodded, pursing her lips.

"Janet Rose."

"Okay, I'll go-" Jared was cut-off by the sound of footsteps, crunching through the gravel of the driveway. He turned and saw his partner, Catlin Jones, approaching. The medic nodded before turning to go back to the ambulance.

"Jones, good to see you up."

"Right," she muttered, snapping on gloves as she walked up to him. "What's the victim's name?"

"Janet Rose. She wasn't reported missing."

"Has anyone found her partner yet?"

Jared sighed, shaking his head. "No, I was just about to head up to the bedroom. We'll probably find him, just like the others, bullet in his brain, lying in the bed."

"Assuming he's dead, we've got four bodies now, and four traumatized women." Jones shook her head as they began heading towards the front door.

* * *

"Hey, we got a case," JJ said, leaning out of the doorframe. Prentiss got up and gave Morgan a gentle shove as she walked past him sleeping in his chair. He jumped, blinking as he looked around. He gave Reid a sleepy, confused look, and Reid gave a tight-lipped smile in response.

"We have a case."

"Oh, right." Morgan rubbed his eyes and stood, stretching, and then they both made their way into the conference room.

"How'd you get done with those files so fast anyway?" Reid asked as he sat at the table.

"I gave most of them to you," Morgan explained, sitting down between Prentiss and Garcia. Prentiss snorted a laugh, and Garcia smacked him playfully with a case file. Rossi walked in and rolled his eyes at them as he sat at the far end of the table. Everyone quieted and turned serious as Hotch walked in the room, staring down at the case file he held as he walked. JJ started the screen at the front of the room, and four pictures came up. Each featured a young man and woman posing together, smiling brightly at the camera.

"There have been a series of kidnapping/murders in Newark, New Jersey. Carla Anders, Matthew Jacobs, Sarah May, Jason Smith, Shandell Wood, Simon Harris, Janet Rose and Peter McLane." Four new pictures sprung up on the screen in front of the previous pictures, revealing the men, each lying in a crumpled heap, facedown in their own pool of blood on hardwood floors. Hotch flipped through a couple pages in his file, and then looked up. "Jacobs, Smith, Harris and McLane were found in their homes, all in lying in their beds, shot in the head…their partners, Anders, May, Wood and Rose, were abducted. About three days after the woman were abducted-" Four more pictures. Garcia shivered, and looked away quickly. "the women were found alive in their homes, . There was no sexual assault, but all of their faces had been mutilated."

"The unsub killed their fiancés, abducted them, and then took them back to their homes to cut up their faces while they were still alive…" Reid muttered, frowning as he looked at his case file. Hotch nodded. Reid's frown deepened, and he pursed his lips. Hotch seemed to catch his though before he spoke it.

"You're wondering how he got the women back into their homes without getting caught, if the police were expecting them there." Reid looked up and nodded. "The Newark police still aren't sure. McLane was found after Janet Rose. But as for the others, a part of it is that the station lacks the manpower to station police inside every room, and outside. The victims claim that they don't remember being taken to the house, or being mutilated."

"Are there any similarities between the victims?" Morgan asked.

"All of the victims were engaged to be married. All except for Rose and McLane were planning on getting married within a month of the initial murder and abduction. Rose and McLane were planning on getting married next spring."

"Aside from the engagements, were there any other similarities?" Rossi asked.

"All of the woman fit a pretty clear profile. Tall, slim, short brown hair, brown eyes," Reid murmured.

"And the husbands-to-be all had large bank accounts," JJ added.

"What about the girls?" Rossi asked.

"Middle class." JJ answered, sitting down after she turned off the screen. Hotch nodded, and then closed his case file.

"I want to get there as soon as possible. Janet Rose was found about an hour ago, but if the unsub sticks to his time line, he'll kill another man and abduct another woman in less than a week. Garcia, I want you to find anything else on the woman and their marriages that might connect them to each other. Everyone else, wheels up in thirty."

* * *

Reid bit lightly on the end of his pen. He shifted, pulling his legs onto the seat, and glanced out the dark window of the jet, doing his best not to yawn. Hotch came over and sat next to him, raising his eyebrows inquisitively.

"Reid, you should try to get some sleep before we get there, that's what everyone else is doing."

"Just reading over the file again," Reid muttered, looking away from the window, rubbing his hand over his eyes. "And you weren't sleeping either," Reid added. Hotch hadn't slept in the past year, not since Haley had died. He put on a good act though, as if he were coping just fine. When they shared a room during cases, Hotch would be awake all night, going over case files, or just pretending to sleep. Reid sometimes stayed up with him, talking about psychiatric journals he'd read, movies that were coming out in theaters that neither of them would get the time to see, and other pointless things.

"I needed to look at some details of the case, and I don't read as fast as you do. Get some sleep, Reid. We need to find the guy doing this before he kidnaps another girl, and you need to be rested if we're going to do that." Hotch put his hand on Reid's shoulder, and stood up. "You still have enough time for a nap before we get to Newark."

* * *

"You must be David Rossi, I've heard about you." Jared shook Rossi's hand, giving him a tired smile. Rossi gave a short, but understanding chuckle.

"Indeed I am. You're Jared Stone, the lead detective on the case?"

Jared nodded, his lips thinning slightly in a frown. "Yeah. This is my partner, Catlin Jones," Jared waved a hand at Catlin, who sat at a desk, staring intently at a computer screen. "I'm sorry, I'm afraid I don't know the rest of your team's names." Rossi turned his head over his shoulder to glance at the other members of the team. Hotch was talking to Police Chief, and the others were setting up in a separate corner of the office that had been set aside for them.

"Our unit chief is Aaron Hotchner, over there," Rossi pointed as he gave Jared their names. "That's Jennifer Jareau, the woman trying to inhale that cup of espresso is Emily Prentiss, that's Derek Morgan, and the young man by the white board is Doctor Spencer Reid." Jared nodded as Rossi went over their names, glancing at each one as they were pointed out. Rossi paused to let at least a few of the names sink in before he continued. "I was wondering if Agent Prentiss and I could speak with the last victim, Janet Rose?" Jared blinked, tearing his eyes off of the team.

"Hm? Oh...You can try. She hasn't really been talking. She suffered a lot more physical trauma than the others, from what the medics told me, but she might be awake soon, if you want to try to talk to her."

Rossi nodded, giving a tight smile. "Yes, I think we will. Thank you, Detective." With that, Rossi walked over to Prentiss, and then the two of them left. Hotch had finished talking to the Police Chief, and was pinning up crime scene photos to a bulletin board with Morgan. They nodded in acknowledgment as Prentiss and Rossi left. Jared walked over just as Reid dropped a box of files on his foot. Jared gave a sympathetic laugh and knelt down with Reid to help him pick up the files on the floor. Reid glanced at him before fixing his gaze intently at the files he was grabbing off of the floor. Once they put the box and files onto the table, Jared offered his hand, and Reid shook it nervously.

"Thanks," Reid muttered, opening a file and looking over the photos inside of it.

"No problem, Doctor Reid. I'm Detective Jared Stone by the way. Thank you guys for coming."

"Do you have any possible suspects?" Hotch asked, before Reid could reply. Jared sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"No. We have tons of evidence, including prints, but when we ran them, they did not match anything in the system."

Hotch pursed his lips and nodded. "Morgan, you and JJ stay here and try to find some connection between the women that might have led the unsub to them. Detective Stone, could you take Reid and I to see Peter McLane's body?"

**TBC...**

* * *

_Hear the tolling of the bells-_

_Iron bells!_

_What a world of solemn thought their melody compels!_

_In the silence of the night,_

_How we shiver with affright_

_At the melancholy menace of their tone!_

_For every sound that floats_

_From the rust within their throats_

_Is a groan._

_And the people-ah, the people-_

_They that dwell up in the steeple,_

_All alone,_

_And who tolling, tolling, tolling,_

_In that muffled monotone,_

_Feel a glory in so rolling_

_On the human heart a stone-_

_They are neither man nor woman-_

_They are neither brute nor human-_

_They are Ghouls:_

_And their king it is who tolls;_

_And he rolls, rolls, rolls_

_Rolls_

-Edgar Allan Poe, The Bells

* * *

**A/N: Well, here's chapter one. Please review, tell me what you think of it so far. I shall hopefully get the next chapter up soon. I am currently on break, so I have more time to write. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **Still don't own Criminal Minds

**A/N: **Sorry this chapter took so long. A wonderful, amazing girl asked me to be her girlfriend, so I've been a little preoccupied.

**WARNING: SPOILERS**

* * *

"Janet Rose? Janet, can you hear me? I'm David Rossi, I'm with the FBI, and I would like to talk to you."

Glazed brown eyes turned to Rossi. Janet slowly parted her lips, her bottom lip sporting a gash that cut all the way through, running almost all of the way to her chin.

"I look like Freddy Krueger," she hissed, hardly able to speak as a result of the dozens of short, deep cuts on her face. Rossi and Prentiss glanced at each other, and then Prentiss backed away, and Rossi took the seat next to Janet.

"The doctors will do everything they can to help the wounds heal, and as long as they don't get infected, you'll look as good as new in no time. And you're already looking better than me." Although Janet couldn't move her face into any particular expression, she did narrow her eyes in annoyance, so Rossi cleared his throat and sat back in the hospital chair. "Ms. Rose, I was wondering if you could tell us anything that might help us catch the man that did this to you. According to reports filed by other women, the suspect is a Caucasian male, in his mid-thirties, about six-foot three, well-built, short dark hair, green eyes. Is there anything you'd like to add to this?"

Janet thought for a moment, her mouth hanging open as her eyes glazed over. "He was poor. I didn't see much of his house, but he had cheep clothing. He would eat with me, and always give me take out or microwave dinners, and he ate roman noodles."

Rossi glanced at Prentiss, who frowned at him, confused, and then he looked back at Janet. "Ms. Rose. Do you know what made him take you back to your house? Did you do anything different, was there anything that seemed to trigger it?"

Janet tilted her chin back, and frowned at him, meeting Rossi's eyes. "He asked me to marry him. I told him I wouldn't marry a broke piece of shit who kidnaps me and kills my fiancé."

Rossi nodded, and pulled out a card and handed to Janet. "Well, thank you for your time, Ms. Rose. If you can think of anything else, will you give us a call?"

Janet nodded, and looked away as Rossi stood and walked over to Prentiss. She held the card tightly in her hand, crumpling it. "Sure. Just as long as you catch the bastard that ruined my face."

Rossi and Prentiss walked out of the room, and as soon as they were out of earshot, Prentiss shook her head. "Sweet, isn't she?" she said, sarcasm in her voice.

"A doll. She's not as reticent as I had thought she would be."

"She's more pissed off than anything. But it sounds just like what we read in the reports from the other woman. They all turned him down."

Rossi nodded. "Right. I'm going to call JJ and have her ask whoever interviewed the other women if they noticed the other victims acting with the same type of charm as Janet Rose."

* * *

Reid's brow knitted as he tilted his head to the side, examining Peter McLane's body. "He was found in his bed?"

Jared nodded, stepping beside Reid to peer at the body. "Yup. The…" Jared paused. "The Unsub used a low caliber gun, and the bullet lodged itself near the back of McLane's skull."

"Hmmmm…" Reid murmured, narrowing his eyes and scrutinizing the bullet hole.

"We didn't find any traces of blood anywhere in the house, and we're sure he wasn't moved after being shot."

"Really? There isn't a lot of gun residue on the forehead, the gun would have had to have been at least two feet away. The unsub would have had to stand on the bed, over the victim, to shoot him."

Jared nodded again, folding his arms across his chest and shrugging. "Yeah, it's weird. There isn't any sign that he woke up, or struggled. I think I would have gotten up if somebody was standing on my bed."

"That too. Janet must not have been in bed with him either, or she would have gotten up."

Hotch walked up to them, from where he had been listening at the edge of the room. "The other women were all out of the room when their fiancés were shot. Janet probably was as well."

"That's a risky move, either way, getting on the bed to shoot them. And taking the women back to the houses…" Reid turned to look at Hotch, and eyebrow raised. Hotch nodded, his lips thinning.

"He's suffering from a delusion...He's not in touch with reality, or aware that his actions have consequences."

Hotch and Reid walked out of the room, and Jared let out a sigh, looking at Peter McLane's body with a grim expression. He waited for a moment, and then followed Hotch and Reid out, pulling out his keys as he walked to the car. He unlocked it, and Hotch got in the passenger seat, Reid in the back as Jared climbed into the driver's seat.

"So what do you think this guys delusion is? Something to do with marrying the women?" Jared asked, pulling out of the parking lot and onto the road.

Hotch nodded, taking out a file and opening it, scribbling something in his notes. "It's not too strange for a man to fall in love with women he hasn't met, and feel that the stranger share the same feelings-"

"Erotomania," Spencer chimed in from the back seat.

"But it's usually accompanied with disorganization, and the fact that he's able to get these women back into their houses says he's not. And the mutilation doesn't really fit either, he'd be more likely to kill them when he's turned down." Hotch rubbed the side of his face, shaking his head. Jared glanced at him, then back to the road.

"It's a little late, maybe I should take you guys back to your hotel?" Jared asked. Hotch glanced at his watch.

"It's only ten, but maybe the team could look over what we have so far and come back with a fresh start in the morning."

Jared nodded and took a right turn, and as he drove, Hotch called JJ and Rossi and told them the plan. After a couple minutes, they were at the hotel, and Hotch and Reid got out. Morgan pushed away from the SUV he was leaning against and nodded his head towards it.

"Your go-bags are in the back. We only got a couple rooms, so we have to share. Me and Rossi already got one room, and JJ and Prentiss got the room with the mini fridge, so you guys got the last pick."

Reid pouted, and Morgan just chuckled, handing him the keys to the SUV before heading to his own room with his stack of case files. Reid let out a sigh, and him, Hotch and Jared headed to the back of the SUV.

"So I'll see you and your team at the station tomorrow?" Jared asked as Reid handed Hotch his go-bag. Hotch nodded as he grabbed it.

"We'll be there first thing in the morning. Thank you, Detective Stone," Hotch turned and walked to the hotel room. Jared gave a tight-lipped smile to Hotch's back, and then turned to go, but stopped and turned back at the sound of Reid's yelp.

"Here, Doctor Reid, let me help you with that," Jared offered, picking the bag up off of the ground. "Jeez, what you got in here, bricks?" Jared laughed. Reid bit his lips together, and then made a face.

"Uh, no. Just some clothes and a couple books for the flight back home."

"No way you can read so many books in the short flight from here to Quantico," Jared said, carrying the bag towards the hotel room. Reid scowled, locked the SUV, and then hurried after him.

"I um….read fast...wait, I can get that, really…" Jared shook his head, chuckling slightly.

"Already saw you drop a box on your foot today, kid. Just let me get this to your room and I'll leave you alone." Jared walked to the open hotel door, which Hotch was holding, an eyebrow raised slightly. Reid murmured a disgruntled thank you as Jared set the bad down and walked out. Hotch closed the door, and turned to Reid, a frown forming on his face.

"Were you just flirting with Detective Stone?" Hotch asked. Reid hunched his shoulders, shaking his head.

"No, I was not. Did Rossi give you the tape from the interview with Janet Rose?" Reid asked, kneeling next to his bag, pulling out a pair of sweats and an old tee shirt. Hotch nodded, holding up the tape recorder. After Reid changed into his night clothes, they sat on one of the beds and listened to the tape. They talked about what Janet said, and how she sounded on the tape for about an hour, before they called it a night. As Hotch started falling asleep, Reid curled up near the very edge of his bed. It had been over a year since George Foyet had killed Haley, but he was still having nightmares, and it was a silent agreement that Reid shared a room with Hotch if there weren't enough rooms for everyone. After sharing a room with Hotch so many times, Reid had found it was easier to sleep on the edge of the bed closest to Hotch so he could just roll off when Hotch was screaming from a nightmare. Once he was out of bed, Reid would just crawl into Hotch's bed, and rub his arms and back until Hotch stopped screaming, careful not to wake him up, knowing that he would be more likely to remember the dream if he woke up during his nightmare.

**TBC….**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **Still don't own Criminal Minds

**A/N: Apparently I'm going to be ridiculously busy no matter what, so I'm going to be one of those slow writer's whose story you forget about until the new chapter comes up, because my life just won't slow down.**

* * *

Hotch stormed into the police station, aggression written into his actions, even as he managed to maintain an air of calm control. He was crisp and wide awake, despite having gotten out of bed an hour earlier than expected. Reid came in behind him, his hair still sticking up in places from laying in bed, shirt untucked, jacket unbuttoned. He readjusted the strap on his brown messenger bag, and then tucked a couple strands of unruly hair behind his ears. The others were still getting ready, and hadn't yet left the hotel. Hotch walked right up to Jared, a stern expression on his face.

"What happened?" Hotch asked, and his tone clearly said, '_why did you get my agents up at three in the morning?'_

Jared nodded, almost apologetically. "There's been a murder. But…it's a little different this time. I'm going to send a text with the address to your other agents. Come on, Let's go." Jared put a hand on Reid's shoulder briefly, turning him towards the door before breaking contact and walking out. Hotch followed immediately, walking right next to Jared.

Reid chanced a glance at Hotch, noting the way his lips tightened. They got into Jared's car, and once again, Hotch took the passenger seat with Reid in the back and Jared driving.

"What's the name of the murder victim?" Reid asked after two minutes of driving in silence, fidgeting nervously in the back seat. With the silence in the car, his mind had begun to wander, and instead of mentally going over the unsub's profile, his mind had strayed to begin profiling Hotch and Jared's interactions. Both were definite Alfa males, and their personalities were beginning to crash.

"Anita Wise."

A frown immediately settled onto both profiler's faces.

"A woman? That doesn't fit the M.O., Detective. And our unsub shouldn't be killing this soon," Hotch said, a hint of irritation in his voice.

"I know," Jared replied, his expression relaxed. He made a turn, and then pulled up to a house where several police cars and an ambulance were already parked.

"Are you sure it's the same unsub?" Reid asked, curiosity and confusion both in his tone. Jared didn't reply, he just got out of the car, and Hotch and Reid followed, walking behind him as he went into the house. As they made it inside, two black SUV's pulled up, and Morgan, Rossi, JJ and Prentiss hurried after them. They stopped as they came up to a female body lying in the kitchen. Jared snapped on a pair of rubber gloves and knelt beside her, pointing at a bullet hole in her chest.

"From what I was told, her, and her fiancé were in the kitchen when the unsub broke in. He walked towards the stairs, but then noticed them in the kitchen, and pulled out a gun, and told Anita to get into the bedroom. When her fiancé, James Simon, moved to attack the unsub, there was a scuffle, the gun went off, and Anita was shot and killed. The unsub started screaming, and hit Simon on the head, knocking him out, and then did this…" Jared turned Anita's face ever so slightly, so the team could see it. JJ's mouth fell open, but no sound came out, and other than that it was completely still for a long moment, as they took in what was left of Anita's face. Reid cleared his throat after a period of silence.

"I think you're right, our unsub did this…and he's devolving. Something must have happened for him to commit a crime so quickly after his last one. And now that he's accidently killed a woman he was targeting to kidnap, it'll only get worse…"

"Worse how?" Jared asked, standing up. Rossi shook his head, and spoke slowly.

"He's already unstable. His behavior may become completely unpredictable now. Morgan, how about you and I talk to the husband?" Morgan nodded, and they turned and walked out of the house.

"It'll be hard to predict his next move. Let's go back to the station and try to use what we have to catch him."

* * *

Reid stood in front of a map, multicolored pins, lines and circles covering it. They had made a profile, and in the other room, the rest of the team were presenting it to the police while Reid worked on the geographic profile. On occasion, he could hear his team member's voices as they gave the profile, little bits and pieces.

_He's probably met the victim's because of their engagement. He might work at a bridal shop. Somewhere where he would be able to meet women about to be married. But he has a lot of time on his hands, so he might not have been an actual employee. He might work there under the table as a favor to the shop owner…_

Reid rubbed at his eyes, trying to block out the voices of his team mates. He already knew the profile, he needed to clear his mind and focus on the geographic profile.

_The killings were probably triggered by a break-up, or some form of rejection. But last night's murder was probably the result of a new stressor. He might have lost his job, or there may have been a death in the family…_

"Doctor Reid, are you alright?"

Reid jumped at the sound of Jared's voice. He hadn't realized he'd been hitting his forehead against the map.

"Yeah, I'm fine…just trying to figure this out. Are they done giving the profile?"

"Yeah. Half of the cops are getting ready to go and interview all the bridal and flower shop owners in town."

"And what are you and Detective Jones going to do?" Reid asked, turning back to his map.

"Your technical analyst…what was her name, Silva? No, no, it was, Garcia, right. Well, she sent us a ton of files on possible suspects, and we're going to help your team narrow them down, and then go and help interview the suspects. Garcia says you're pretty good at this geographic profiling stuff," Jared added, glancing at the map Reid was working on. Reid just shrugged. Jared smiled and put his hand Reid's shoulder.

"Well, I'm going to go and get a coffee and then help them. Would you like one?"

Reid cocked his head to the side. "One what? Oh, coffee. Yes please." He turned to the map, even though Jared's hand was still on his shoulder. "Umm…three spoons of sugar," he added absently. Jared chuckled slightly, and squeezed Reid's shoulder, and then went to get their coffee.

* * *

"How'd interviewing the suspects go?" Reid asked Morgan as he sat down. The rest of the team had gone straight to the break room for coffee. Reid had finished the geographic profile about an hour ago and had sat down to go through Anita's autopsy report, which had come in while the rest of the team had been gone.

"Well, we got a whole lot of nothing, kid." He glanced at the map Reid had made. "None of the guys we interviewed even lived on the same side of town as your little triangle thing."

Reid's eyebrows shot up, and he fought the urge to smile. "I'm going to go get you a coffee," he said, instead of remarking on Morgan's comment. He went to the break room, where Jared and Hotch were discussing something or the other to do with the profile. Reid hunched his shoulders as they both stopped to watch him for a second before continuing their conversation. Hotch scribbled something down on his notepad in response to something Jared said as Reid began a new pot of coffee. That must have been the end of their conversation, because Jared turned to Reid, putting his hand on his shoulder again, a gesture Reid was studiously trying not to profile.

"So how'd the geographic profile turn out?"

"Oh, umm…good. There's quite a large area where he might live, but once I talk to Garcia, I should have a clearer idea of which residences within that area would be most suitable for keeping a hostage."

"Yeah, yeah. I talked to Garcia awhile ago. She's a good analyst, you guys are lucky to have her. She says you have, like, three Ph.D.s? Smart, good-looking kid. Must have to fight ladies off with a stick at the Bureau." Jared still hand his hand and Reid's shoulder, and he smiled charmingly as he spoke.

"Oh…ummm." Reid felt heat rise in his face, and a smile tugging at his lips. But before he could think about why he liked Jared saying that, a loud _snap_ caught his and Jared's attention, and they both looked at Hotch, who still hand his notepad in front of him, and a broken pencil in his hand. Before anyone could comment, Hotch walked out of the room, tossing the pencil in the trash. Reid and Jared both watched him go. Reid didn't notice he had become tense until Jared rubbed his shoulder soothingly.

"You okay, kid? I mean, I didn't mean to…if you two are, like…"

"What? Me and Hotch! No, no….I mean…" Reid was getting flustered, shrinking away from Jared's hand as he became more and more embarrassed. Reid jumped as the timer on the coffee maker went off, nearly falling. Once he caught his balance, he took a deep breath, closing his eyes and calming down before he opened his eyes again. "Hotch and I aren't…together."

Before he could ramble on and embarrass himself further, Reid hurriedly poured Morgan's coffee, almost scalding his hand as he spilled some. He ignored Jared's offer to help him, and hurried out of the break room, setting the coffee down in front of Morgan, who looked at him with raised eyebrows.

"You know, Reid, you were only six feet away that entire time. I saw and heard that whole thing," his voice was light and teasing, and Reid sat down in a chair by the desk Morgan was at.

"Morgan, please…"

"You know, his partner, Catlin Jones? She was telling me that him and his boyfriend broke up a couple weeks ago, and he hasn't started dating, the guys single…."

"Morgan, the last time you tried to set me up with someone, she stole my wallet after I paid for dinner."

"Yeah, but this guy's in law enforcement."

"Morgan…"

"Okay, okay," Morgan held his hands up in surrender. "Just saying. You haven't had a date since that guy who took you to that museum, and then ran off when you said you worked for the FBI…"

"I know...now shut up. Let's just work on the case and forget it."

**TBC…..**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** Still don't own Criminal Minds

**A/N**: So so so so so so so so sorry this took so long. Life has been...difficult. Lots of random stuff coming up, that I didn't want to deal with. But now I can get back to this on occasion...so yeah. Hope you enjoy. If I slip up on any details, its because its been so long since I've looked at this, and I kinda forgot where I was going with it.

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Hotch stood in front of the evidence board, frowning, trying to grasp something he knew he was missing. Something was off, they had missed something in the profile. The unsub seemed sadistic, the mutilation of the faces said as much, but there seemed to be no sexual component at all. That would make sense, especially if the unsub was delusional, but there this unsub was too careful, too lucid. He heard a familiar set of footsteps enter the room.

"Why doesn't he sexually assault the women?" Hotch asked, never looking away from the evidence board. Morgan let out a sigh, rubbing his head as he walked to stand next to Hotch.

"My guess? There's something off with the women. They all have a type, he's picking according to what he finds physically appealing, but he's still not satisfied. Hotch, I don't think he's as disorganized as what we thought. He's not just looking for any woman to mutilate, that's just a reaction to not finding what he wants."

Hotch nodded. "He's looking for a wife, and he wants someone...different from the victims. They fit the physical profile, but they aren't...well-"

"The nicest of women," Morgan offered darkly. Hotch nodded.

"But there's something else. The unsub kills the men, stands over them, and shoots them in the face. He's at least somewhat of a sociopath, he can't sympathize. So what's keeping him from sexually assaulting the women?" Hotch went back to his original question. Something was still missing. Morgan shrugged.

"He's not really sexually attracted to the women," Morgan offered, before turning and leaving the room.

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Blood trickles past from his lips.

This is not how things were supposed to be. How did things keep going so badly? He just wanted the perfect bride. But all of those women, they were nothing but cruel to him. They mocked him. They'd seemed so nice in the store, they had smiled at the clerk, held their husband-to-be's hand so sweetly. But they mocked him. He was not handsome, like their dead fiances, or rich like them. So he hurt them, which helped. It brought out the ugliness that was inside of them. But thinking about Anita Wise...she could have been right. He hadn't wanted to kill her. But she wasn't _really _right, was she? None of them were. So he had tried looking for a different kind of bride. Not the ones like he'd seen in the shop, in their pretty dresses. They looked like brides, but they weren't right for him. He couldn't bring himself to touch them. They were more like beautiful dolls to him. He admired them, but felt nothing deep inside for them.

This was different.

He'd felt something, as their eyes met. Blood had rushed through his veins. It had been right. So he'd put down his beer, and followed them out of the bar. But as soon as he had reached out to grab the young angel's arm, the young man had pulled away from him, punched him in the face and ran.

Fingering his split lip, he frowned, shaking his head. So the kid wasn't the one.

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"Doctor Reid?"

Reid jumped, slightly startled out of his reverie. He tucked his hair behind his ears, smiling shyly up at Jared. "Shouldn't sneak up on me while I'm doing paperwork," Reid muttered, looking down so his hair hid his face. He didn't need Jared to see him blushing. He was already embarrassed enough as it was. Jared smiled, and leaned against the desk, setting down a coffee.

"Sorry, didn't mean to. I got you a coffee. Three spoons of sugar. How's the paperwork going?" Jared asked, twisting his torso and leaning down slightly to glance at what Reid was doing. Reid shrugged slightly, biting his lips together nervously.

"Oh, its, umm...its going okay. Just not really...finding anything useful. Its a little, you know, frustrating."

Jared nodded sympathetically. "Well, you know, its getting kinda late. Have you had anything to eat yet?"

Reid shook his head. "Uh, no, I got...sidetracked."

"Yeah, but you still need to eat, kid. You're looking a little pale. That Garcia lady told me to make sure you ate something, said you tend to get so caught up in work you forget to eat. How about you and I get something to eat? There are plenty of good places around that are open late."

"Umm, okay. Yeah, that sounds good," Reid said nervously. Still, he gave Jared a genuine smile, which Jared returned, patting Reid's shoulder.

"Alright, then, let's go."

Reid nodded, and stood, grabbing his jacket off of the back of his chair, and then grabbing a file off of the table, so he could take it with him and look at it while he ate. Jared rolled his eyes, but kept the smile. Reid kept his head down as he passed by Hotch and Morgan, feeling slightly guilty. He knew Jared was flirting with him, and he could tell it was bugging Hotch. Him and Hotch were close, and he was sure it was just over-protectiveness on Hotch's part. Reid knew his crush on Hotch would go nowhere, whereas Jared actually liked him. And, truth be told, he was starting to really like Jared.

They walked out of the precinct, and got into Jared's car, Reid flicking through the file as Jared drove. Reid became quickly engrossed in the file, and gasped in surprise as his door opened. Shaking off his surprise, Reid realized Jared had parked at a little diner, and walked around to open his door. Rather than voicing his thanks, Reid gave Jared a shy smile, and stood up as he got out of the car, pushing hair behind his ears. They walked in and sat next to each other and ordered their food, and began talking, sharing bits and pieces of themselves to one another. Sometime during the dinner, Reid realized Jared had taken a hold of his hand. Once they finished, they stood, and walked out, Jared still holding Reid's hand, gently rubbing the pad of his thumb in circles on Reid's hand.

It was late, but they went back to the precinct, and they each went to their individual areas to work.

As Reid settled into his chair, he started shuffling papers, getting them in order.

"So...dinner with Mr. Hot-Detective go well?" Morgan asked, grinning as he leaned against Reid's desk. Reid rolled his eyes.

"We're on a case, Morgan. Could you try to focus on finding _something_ that will help us catch the unsub, instead of prying into my personal life?" Reid asked, calm but exasperated.

"So you'll tell me about it later?"

Reid rolled his eyes, but nodded. "Yeah, now leave me alone."

Morgan chuckled and walked out of the room, shaking his head.

Reid scowled, and tried to get back to his work. Several minutes later, however, he shook his head, and stood up, stretching. He really wasn't getting anywhere with what he was doing. So he went straight to the coffee maker, and started a new pot. Just as he was pouring his cup of freshly brewed coffee, Hotch appeared in the doorway, looking stern.

"Reid! There you are. Come on, there's been another murder."

With that, Hotch disappeared back through the doorway. Reid cursed, and took a large drink of his coffee, practically scalding himself in the process, and then he put his cup down on the counter. Cursing under his breath again, Reid hurried back to his desk, and grabbed his jacket, before following the rest of the team out and getting into an SUV.

**TBC...**


End file.
